Fortunate Son

                                                                                                          Marvyn 

Period 5

Fortunate Son    

                 My Uncle , Fransisco Javier Covarruvias , had a difficult childhood but a very successful future.  Born in 1951 in Autlan , Jalisco; he was The 3^rd child of Guadalupe Covarruvias and Javier Covarruvias.  While his mother was a soft spoken and kind, his father was strict, belting him for any small “misdoing.” 

Though His Father was strict, my uncle was glad he was. By The age of 7, he worked selling news papers in down town Autlan.  At the age of 14 he worked with his father in the trucking business. Having already learned to drive at 13 he saw this as a “Piece of cake”. He didn’t complain, as he drove across country around Mexico. He was having fun and had always dreamt of seeing Mexico further down south.  At 16 he graduated from high school and he left to the U.S. for college .After arriving  in the U.S, he applied for citizenship or a green card while attending college.  After 4 weeks in The U.S he was picked up by the U.S. Army after a racist classmate reported him.  He was told to join the army or go to jail for entering illegally to the U.S. He saw this as a risky opportunity to get citizenship and agreed to join the army. Unfortunately, he didn’t know that the Vietnam war was still on. After 6 weeks of boot camp he was shipped to Hawaii, then Okinawa , and finally Saigon Air base or Tan Son Nhut Air base . His first sight of combat was on May 3 , 1969 ,helping the Americans win “Operation: Speedy Express”. He was on a river boat patrolling around while controlling a M60 Turret on the Boat.  Six hours into patrol his boat was ambushed.  While trying to shoot at the Vietcong his M60 jammed.  He got out of his turret to get an M16 to shoot at the Vietcong , but was shot in the thigh with a 7.62 AK round.  After The Vietcong retreated back to the jungle his crew quickly drove the boat back to camp .He was hospitalized for about a month when he was sent back to Vietnam.   

After being in Okinawa for a month he was assigned as a door Gunner for a Hue helicopter of the M.A.G 1^st Marine’s Aircraft Wing.  He would fly with the troops, but would not go down . After the Vietnam war ended he went back to Mexico ,to help his parents with money ,and worked again with his Dad .In 1974 he went partying and drinking and arrived home tired and drunk . Unaware that he had to work in half an hour, his Dad woke him up to get ready to work. They got in the truck and only drove a few miles before my uncle drove the truck off a cliff. Both of them broke some ribs, his dad has a plastic cap in his skull, and my uncle has a metal rod in as a Back.  After 10 Years of trucking my uncle came back to the U.S and got himself a job making $30 an hour. He now lives in Bloomington, California. 

Works Cited

Rosenberg, Jennifer . "The Vietnam War." About. 18 Apr. 2012.

           

                                                             Works Consulted

"The Vietnam War." Wikipedia. 18 Apr. 2012.